EP1320729A1 - Vorrichtung zur schätzung des insassengewichts eines kraftfahrzeuges - Google Patents
Vorrichtung zur schätzung des insassengewichts eines kraftfahrzeugesInfo
- Publication number
- EP1320729A1 EP1320729A1 EP01967592A EP01967592A EP1320729A1 EP 1320729 A1 EP1320729 A1 EP 1320729A1 EP 01967592 A EP01967592 A EP 01967592A EP 01967592 A EP01967592 A EP 01967592A EP 1320729 A1 EP1320729 A1 EP 1320729A1
- Authority
- EP
- European Patent Office
- Prior art keywords
- occupant
- sensor
- weight
- seat
- load
- Prior art date
- Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
- Withdrawn
Links
Classifications
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60R—VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- B60R21/00—Arrangements or fittings on vehicles for protecting or preventing injuries to occupants or pedestrians in case of accidents or other traffic risks
- B60R21/01—Electrical circuits for triggering passive safety arrangements, e.g. airbags, safety belt tighteners, in case of vehicle accidents or impending vehicle accidents
- B60R21/015—Electrical circuits for triggering passive safety arrangements, e.g. airbags, safety belt tighteners, in case of vehicle accidents or impending vehicle accidents including means for detecting the presence or position of passengers, passenger seats or child seats, and the related safety parameters therefor, e.g. speed or timing of airbag inflation in relation to occupant position or seat belt use
- B60R21/01512—Passenger detection systems
- B60R21/01516—Passenger detection systems using force or pressure sensing means
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60R—VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- B60R21/00—Arrangements or fittings on vehicles for protecting or preventing injuries to occupants or pedestrians in case of accidents or other traffic risks
- B60R21/01—Electrical circuits for triggering passive safety arrangements, e.g. airbags, safety belt tighteners, in case of vehicle accidents or impending vehicle accidents
- B60R21/015—Electrical circuits for triggering passive safety arrangements, e.g. airbags, safety belt tighteners, in case of vehicle accidents or impending vehicle accidents including means for detecting the presence or position of passengers, passenger seats or child seats, and the related safety parameters therefor, e.g. speed or timing of airbag inflation in relation to occupant position or seat belt use
- B60R21/01512—Passenger detection systems
- B60R21/0153—Passenger detection systems using field detection presence sensors
- B60R21/01532—Passenger detection systems using field detection presence sensors using electric or capacitive field sensors
-
- B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
- B60—VEHICLES IN GENERAL
- B60R—VEHICLES, VEHICLE FITTINGS, OR VEHICLE PARTS, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- B60R21/00—Arrangements or fittings on vehicles for protecting or preventing injuries to occupants or pedestrians in case of accidents or other traffic risks
- B60R21/01—Electrical circuits for triggering passive safety arrangements, e.g. airbags, safety belt tighteners, in case of vehicle accidents or impending vehicle accidents
- B60R21/015—Electrical circuits for triggering passive safety arrangements, e.g. airbags, safety belt tighteners, in case of vehicle accidents or impending vehicle accidents including means for detecting the presence or position of passengers, passenger seats or child seats, and the related safety parameters therefor, e.g. speed or timing of airbag inflation in relation to occupant position or seat belt use
- B60R21/01554—Seat position sensors
-
- G—PHYSICS
- G01—MEASURING; TESTING
- G01G—WEIGHING
- G01G19/00—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups
- G01G19/40—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups with provisions for indicating, recording, or computing price or other quantities dependent on the weight
- G01G19/413—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups with provisions for indicating, recording, or computing price or other quantities dependent on the weight using electromechanical or electronic computing means
- G01G19/414—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups with provisions for indicating, recording, or computing price or other quantities dependent on the weight using electromechanical or electronic computing means using electronic computing means only
- G01G19/4142—Weighing apparatus or methods adapted for special purposes not provided for in the preceding groups with provisions for indicating, recording, or computing price or other quantities dependent on the weight using electromechanical or electronic computing means using electronic computing means only for controlling activation of safety devices, e.g. airbag systems
Definitions
- Vehicle occupant protection systems which are activated in response to a vehicle crash, for the purpose of mitigating occupant injury are well known in the art.
- a vehicle may contain automatic safety restraint actuators such as front and side air bags, seat belt pretensioners, and deployable knee bolsters.
- the occupant protection system may further include a collision/crash sensor for sensing the occurrence of a vehicle crash and for providing an electrical signal indicative of the crash severity.
- occupant protection systems include an occupant classification or weight detection system.
- the occupant classification/weight detection system could consist of occupant size or weight determination on force/load sensors, capacitive/electric field sensors, resistive load distribution sensors, ultrasonic sensors, infrared sensors, and/or image based sensors.
- a controller which is connected to one or a combination of these sensors, controls the inflatable protection module in response to the sensed size or weight of the occupant.
- one or more deployment aspects of the air bag may be adjusted.
- a protection system with adjustable aspects of deployment is commonly referred to as an "adaptive" protection system. Specifically, if the occupant is so small or light that deploying the air bag will not enhance protection of the occupant, it may be desirable to suppress actuation of the occupant protection module. In such a case, deployment may even be more detrimental than no deployment at all.
- the determination of an occupant's size or weight is an important part of adaptive occupant protection systems.
- a system that classifies the occupant based on the strength of an electric field (or the capacitance of the human body) may be fooled if a portion of the signal used to excite the sensor is lost.
- a system that classifies the occupant based on the load distribution, size, shape and/or orientation of the occupant's posterior may not be reliable because varying people of varying heights and weights may have posteriors with similar size and shape characteristics.
- a system that relies solely on force/load sensors cannot account for false readings due to external forces such as accelerations or losses due to body angle or foot position. Different obstacles such as a map, a book, or a newspaper could occlude signals from ultrasonic and video based systems.
- a lighter or cigarette could blind an infrared-based system.
- the present invention is based on the fact that, in an occupant classification or weight detection system, false readings due to external forces and losses due to body angle and foot position can be compensated for, if these factors can be detected and measured reliably and consistently.
- This invention provides a simple, reliable method of determining these factors and using them in conjunction with force/load sensors to accurately determine an occupant's size and weight.
- the system includes a seat-mounted sensor consisting of four force/load transducers and a multi-axis acceleration transducer assisted by a roof mounted occupant head position sensor, which are used to determine the size and weight of an occupant who is sitting in a seat that is subjected to the dynamic forces of a moving vehicle.
- the roof mounted head position sensor provides the system with the location of the occupant's head relative to the seat pan.
- a linear seat position sensor is used to track the position of the seat.
- the head position sensor and the seat position sensor are used to find the body angle of the occupant. This value is used to bias the weight values read by the weight sensors.
- the acceleration sensors are used to determine if and how other forces, such as acceleration, are influencing the weight sensor readings.
- An intelligent controller monitors theses sensors and determines the true weight of the occupant.
- Figure 1 shows the position of all of the transducers in a vehicle.
- Figure 2 shows the position of the weight sensors in the seat.
- Figure 3 shows the position of the capacitive electrodes.
- the force/load sensors (1) are mounted in the four corners of the seat pan.
- the first electrode (2) of the head position sensor is mounted in a vehicle seat.
- the second electrode is an element of the array (3) mounted to the ceiling of the vehicle above the occupant's seat.
- a seat position sensor (4) is mounted between the seat pan and the supports.
- a three-direction acceleration sensor (5) is mounted rigidly under the seat.
- a control unit (6) continuously monitors all of the sensors.
- the control unit (6) utilizes an excitation method and a synchronous detection method to measure capacity. It uses a micro power low frequency signal that is safe for humans.
- the resulting weight measurement read by the force/load sensors is biased to account for body angle, foot position and external forces acting on the occupant.
- the force/load transducers measure the weight distribution on the seat pan.
- a weight is measured on each corner of the seat pan.
- Figure 2 shows the force/load transducers (1) are mounted on each corner of the seat pan (2), to the seat slide rails (3). These in turn connect to the seat frame. The configuration of these transducers allows the load on each corner of the seat pan to be determined.
- These sensors give the load distribution of the occupant on the seat, i.e. the forces acting on each corner of the seat pan).
- the sensors are covered by the seat cushion (4).
- the system provides an occupant head position sensor, which utilizes the human body's conductivity, to determine head position by measuring the capacity between the occupant's head and the roof-mounted array of sensors (electrodes).
- a ceiling-mounted occupant head position sensor may be incorporated in any type of vehicle that has a seat and a roof.
- the principal components of the ceiling-mounted proximity sensor of the preferred system are: a set of electrodes mounted in the base portion of the seat; a ceiling-mounted array of second electrodes; a control unit which is connected to both the first and second set of electrodes to provide the necessary measurements and calculations.
- the seat- mounted electrode provides capacitive connection with the occupant many times greater than the capacity between the occupant's head and the roof-mounted array of electrodes. This connection allows for the consideration that the occupant is coupled to the seat electrode.
- the capacity between the occupant's head and the roof- mounted array of electrodes is a function of the distance between them.
- the control unit uses an excitation method to measure the said capacity.
- the multi-axis acceleration transducer is used to determine if external forces, such as accelerations, are influencing the weight readings. These forces are measured in three directions: front-to-rear, side-to-side and up down.
- the acceleration in the front-to-rear direction allows the system to recognize if the vehicle is accelerating/braking or if the occupant is leaning forward or backwards.
- the acceleration in the side-to-side direction allows the system to recognize if the vehicle is turning on an off ramp (or swerving around an obstacle) or whether the occupant is leaning to the side.
- the acceleration in the up-down direction allows the system to recognize if the vehicle is going over bumps.
- the system can also incorporate a seat inclination transducer to compensate for an occupant sitting in a seat that is tilted back, hi this situation a great deal of the occupant' s weight may be supported by the backrest.
- An intelligent controller monitors the force/load transducers and the acceleration transducers to determine the weight of the occupant, and compensating for false readings due to external forces and losses due to body angle and foot position.
- This invention provides a simple, reliable method of determining these factors and using them in conjunction with force/load sensors to accurately determine an occupant's size and weight.
Landscapes
- Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
- Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
- Mathematical Physics (AREA)
- Theoretical Computer Science (AREA)
- General Physics & Mathematics (AREA)
- Air Bags (AREA)
- Seats For Vehicles (AREA)
Applications Claiming Priority (5)
Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
---|---|---|---|
US23352300P | 2000-09-19 | 2000-09-19 | |
US233523P | 2000-09-19 | ||
US31025901P | 2001-08-07 | 2001-08-07 | |
US310259P | 2001-08-07 | ||
PCT/IB2001/001722 WO2002025229A1 (en) | 2000-09-19 | 2001-09-19 | Vehicle occupant weight estimation apparatus |
Publications (1)
Publication Number | Publication Date |
---|---|
EP1320729A1 true EP1320729A1 (de) | 2003-06-25 |
Family
ID=26926984
Family Applications (1)
Application Number | Title | Priority Date | Filing Date |
---|---|---|---|
EP01967592A Withdrawn EP1320729A1 (de) | 2000-09-19 | 2001-09-19 | Vorrichtung zur schätzung des insassengewichts eines kraftfahrzeuges |
Country Status (4)
Country | Link |
---|---|
US (1) | US6989496B2 (de) |
EP (1) | EP1320729A1 (de) |
AU (1) | AU2001287964A1 (de) |
WO (1) | WO2002025229A1 (de) |
Families Citing this family (21)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US7088113B2 (en) | 2002-07-08 | 2006-08-08 | Intelligent Mechatronic Systems Inc. | Integrated occupant sensory system |
DE10232360A1 (de) * | 2002-07-17 | 2004-02-05 | Robert Bosch Gmbh | Vorrichtung zur Gewichtsmessung in einem Fahrzeug |
GB2408239A (en) * | 2003-11-19 | 2005-05-25 | Autoliv Dev | Safety arrangement actuated to restrain forward movement of a vehicle occupant's knees |
GB2432446A (en) * | 2004-06-10 | 2007-05-23 | Automotive Systems Lab | Occupant classification system and method |
DE102004047906A1 (de) * | 2004-09-29 | 2006-04-13 | Daimlerchrysler Ag | Steuervorrichtung für ein Insassenschutzmittel eines Kraftfahrzeuges |
US20100324774A1 (en) * | 2009-06-19 | 2010-12-23 | Robert Bosch Gmbh | Vehicle occupant safety system and method including a seat-back acceleration sensor |
US8558713B2 (en) * | 2010-11-03 | 2013-10-15 | Delphi Technologies, Inc. | Weight based vehicle seat occupant detection device with compensation for seat orientation angle |
US10108783B2 (en) | 2011-07-05 | 2018-10-23 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Systems, computer medium and computer-implemented methods for monitoring health of employees using mobile devices |
US10307104B2 (en) | 2011-07-05 | 2019-06-04 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Chair pad system and associated, computer medium and computer-implemented methods for monitoring and improving health and productivity of employees |
US9492120B2 (en) * | 2011-07-05 | 2016-11-15 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Workstation for monitoring and improving health and productivity of employees |
US9833142B2 (en) | 2011-07-05 | 2017-12-05 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Systems, computer medium and computer-implemented methods for coaching employees based upon monitored health conditions using an avatar |
CA2957705C (en) | 2011-07-05 | 2020-11-10 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Floor mat system and associated, computer medium and computer-implemented methods for monitoring and improving health and productivity of employees |
US9193321B2 (en) * | 2013-06-21 | 2015-11-24 | Continental Automotive Systems, Inc. | Multi-axis vehicle sensor mounting |
JP6448088B2 (ja) * | 2015-06-24 | 2019-01-09 | 株式会社デンソー | 車両用乗員判定装置 |
US10642955B2 (en) | 2015-12-04 | 2020-05-05 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Devices, methods, and computer medium to provide real time 3D visualization bio-feedback |
US10475351B2 (en) | 2015-12-04 | 2019-11-12 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Systems, computer medium and methods for management training systems |
US9889311B2 (en) | 2015-12-04 | 2018-02-13 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Systems, protective casings for smartphones, and associated methods to enhance use of an automated external defibrillator (AED) device |
US10628770B2 (en) | 2015-12-14 | 2020-04-21 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Systems and methods for acquiring and employing resiliency data for leadership development |
US20180236960A1 (en) | 2017-02-22 | 2018-08-23 | Bgm Engineering, Inc. | Low-Cost Weight Measurement and Sensing System |
US10824132B2 (en) | 2017-12-07 | 2020-11-03 | Saudi Arabian Oil Company | Intelligent personal protective equipment |
US20240127384A1 (en) * | 2022-10-04 | 2024-04-18 | Mohamed bin Zayed University of Artificial Intelligence | Cooperative health intelligent emergency response system for cooperative intelligent transport systems |
Family Cites Families (14)
Publication number | Priority date | Publication date | Assignee | Title |
---|---|---|---|---|
US3740567A (en) * | 1972-04-20 | 1973-06-19 | Wagner Electric Corp | High-discrimination antenna array for capacitance-responsive circuits |
US6324453B1 (en) * | 1998-12-31 | 2001-11-27 | Automotive Technologies International, Inc. | Methods for determining the identification and position of and monitoring objects in a vehicle |
US6078854A (en) * | 1995-06-07 | 2000-06-20 | Automotive Technologies International, Inc. | Apparatus and method for adjusting a vehicle component |
US5626359A (en) * | 1993-12-02 | 1997-05-06 | Trw Vehicle Safety Systems, Inc. | Method and apparatus for controlling an actuatable restraining device in response to discrete control zones |
US5670853A (en) * | 1994-12-06 | 1997-09-23 | Trw Vehicle Safety Systems Inc. | Method and apparatus for controlling vehicle occupant position |
WO1997039920A1 (en) | 1996-04-23 | 1997-10-30 | Advanced Safety Concepts, Inc. | Vehicle occupant sensing |
US5785347A (en) * | 1996-10-21 | 1998-07-28 | Siemens Automotive Corporation | Occupant sensing and crash behavior system |
US5871232A (en) * | 1997-01-17 | 1999-02-16 | Automotive Systems, Laboratory, Inc. | Occupant position sensing system |
US6043736A (en) * | 1997-02-24 | 2000-03-28 | Kansei Corporation | Weighing apparatus, apparatus for detecting auxiliary-seat mounting direction, person-on-board protecting apparatus, and apparatus for giving warning about seating condition |
US6302438B1 (en) * | 1998-04-21 | 2001-10-16 | Automotive Systems Laboratory, Inc. | Occupant detection system |
US6259167B1 (en) * | 1998-07-09 | 2001-07-10 | Peter Norton | Seat occupant weight sensing system |
US6087598A (en) * | 1999-02-03 | 2000-07-11 | Trw Inc. | Weight sensing apparatus for vehicle seat |
US6598900B2 (en) * | 1999-04-19 | 2003-07-29 | Automotive Systems Laboratory, Inc. | Occupant detection system |
US6626359B2 (en) * | 2002-01-11 | 2003-09-30 | Ncr Corporation | Methods and apparatus for reduced electronic shelf label power consumption |
-
2001
- 2001-09-19 AU AU2001287964A patent/AU2001287964A1/en not_active Abandoned
- 2001-09-19 WO PCT/IB2001/001722 patent/WO2002025229A1/en not_active Application Discontinuation
- 2001-09-19 EP EP01967592A patent/EP1320729A1/de not_active Withdrawn
- 2001-09-19 US US10/363,748 patent/US6989496B2/en not_active Expired - Fee Related
Non-Patent Citations (1)
Title |
---|
See references of WO0225229A1 * |
Also Published As
Publication number | Publication date |
---|---|
US6989496B2 (en) | 2006-01-24 |
AU2001287964A1 (en) | 2002-04-02 |
US20030173120A1 (en) | 2003-09-18 |
WO2002025229A1 (en) | 2002-03-28 |
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Legal Events
Date | Code | Title | Description |
---|---|---|---|
PUAI | Public reference made under article 153(3) epc to a published international application that has entered the european phase |
Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: 0009012 |
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17P | Request for examination filed |
Effective date: 20030404 |
|
AK | Designated contracting states |
Designated state(s): AT BE CH CY DE DK ES FI FR GB GR IE IT LI LU MC NL PT SE TR |
|
AX | Request for extension of the european patent |
Extension state: AL LT LV MK RO SI |
|
RIN1 | Information on inventor provided before grant (corrected) |
Inventor name: FILIPPOV, VLADIMIR Inventor name: BASIR, OTMAN, ADAM Inventor name: KARRAY, FAKHRI Inventor name: JOHNSON, BRIAN Inventor name: DESROCHERS, KRISTOPHER, L. |
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GRAP | Despatch of communication of intention to grant a patent |
Free format text: ORIGINAL CODE: EPIDOSNIGR1 |
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STAA | Information on the status of an ep patent application or granted ep patent |
Free format text: STATUS: THE APPLICATION IS DEEMED TO BE WITHDRAWN |
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18D | Application deemed to be withdrawn |
Effective date: 20061212 |